Den drukne. Prøvetryk til Chr. Winther og M. Rørbye, "25 Billeder for små børn" 1846

Curator: Here we have "Den drukne. Prøvetryk til Chr. Winther og M. Rørbye, "25 Billeder for små børn," a lithograph in ink by Adolph Kittendorff, created around 1846. Editor: Hmm, my first thought is – ouch. Not a scene of domestic bliss. Something about that staggering figure really unsettles me, though the rendering feels almost…gentle? Curator: "The Drunkard: Proof Print for Chr. Winther and M. Rørbye’s "25 Pictures for Small Children". It's interesting, isn’t it? That a narrative intended for children contains such a potent image of societal dysfunction. It makes you consider what lessons were considered suitable for young eyes back then. Editor: Lessons? Maybe it was supposed to scare the little ones straight. I can imagine a child seeing this and getting a serious aversion therapy against drink. Looking closely, I notice the almost cartoonish way the figures in the background are drawn. Like, the scene could be slapstick, except it’s underpinned by the heavy shadow falling on the street. Curator: Absolutely. Romanticism often used these contrasts. Look at the composition – a central, flawed figure juxtaposed against the seemingly stable domestic scene in the background. Those neatly arranged children on the stoop present such a sharp contrast. Perhaps it's suggesting the innocence lost or at risk? Consider also, the shop window beside our drunken figure. Do you see any hidden clues? Any cultural markers? Editor: Is that a dog in the window? Odd little detail. And those bottles...the scene is complex, the poor fellow staggering away in one direction, as the innocent children behind him move in the other...it makes you want to understand the full story here. I wonder what happened *before* this snapshot? Curator: And *after*? I feel that this image is supposed to echo through a long span of family events. Maybe it did. That potential echo – it is what holds the piece's disturbing power. It isn't merely about the event you see at first glace but what could come from the fall of the drunken person. Editor: That's it exactly. This image goes straight for the jugular of my deepest held convictions. A punch in the gut. Now *that’s* a compelling print, however discomforting it is. Thanks for showing me, Adolph!